Dan McGrath, Kevin Friedl, Mike Martinez, Karianne Jones, and Emily Ross Are The Latest Additions To The Rapidly Growing Pro-Democracy Legal Organization 

Washington, DC — Today, Democracy Forward announced that it has added four highly regarded lawyers who previously served in roles in the Biden-Harris Administration to its legal ranks. Dan McGrath, who most recently served as Senior Counsel at the Department of Labor’s Office of the Solicitor, Kevin Friedl, outgoing Senior Counsel at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Michael Martinez, who most recently served as Deputy General Counsel at the Office of Personnel Management and prior to that former Chief of Staff to the Assistant Attorney General, and Karianne Jones who most recently served as the Litigation Counsel for the Biden-Harris campaign and, prior to joining the campaign, was a former OMB Assistant General Counsel are joining the organization as Senior Counsels. The move is a return to the organization for Martinez and Jones. These attorneys will add to Democracy Forward’s ongoing expansion of its operations to address pressing threats to democracy and progress throughout the United States as those threats are likely to intensify in the wake of the incoming Trump-Vance administration’s stated plans. 

In addition, Democracy Forward announced that Emily Ross, recent Executive Secretariat at the Department of Justice, is also joining Democracy Forward. Ross, who has held prior roles at the CFPB and as a Senior Advisor to Senator Elizbaeth Warren, will serve as Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the President and CEO.

“We are thrilled to welcome Dan, Kevin, Karianne, Mike, and Emily as we continue to build a team that is fit for the work ahead of ensuring the American people and our democracy has a whole has lawyers and advocates in their corner for the long fights ahead,” said Democracy Forward President & CEO, Skye Perryman. “The strength of Democracy Forward’s work has always been its tremendous staff,our partners, and the courageous clients from across the nation we have the privilege of representing each day. Since its founding in the aftermath of the 2016 election, Democracy Forward has played a critical role in representing people and communities across the nation to ensure their rights are protected and to advance our nation’s best values, meeting  extremist movements with swift legal opposition. These talented individuals will allow us to continue that important work at such a pivotal point for the American people and in our nation.”

McGrath, Friedl,  Martinez, Jones, and Ross are the latest additions to Democracy Forward’s growing staff. Late last year, the organization announced staff additions that included former high ranking government lawyers and other highly regarded legal practitioners to join its growing ranks. As the Executive Branch transitions in Washington, Democracy Forward is planning a raft of litigation to defend people against the harmful and dangerous policies in Project 2025 while also building for a better future. It previously announced the launch of Democracy 2025, which is a coalition of 350+ organizations that are a legal frontline against extremism. The organization intends to announce additional hires later this month. 

Dan McGrath, Senior Counsel – Dan most recently served as Senior Counsel at the Department of Labor, Office of the Solicitor. Dan, prior to DOL, served as counsel on the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis, conducting investigations of both the federal government’s response to the pandemic and the pandemic’s economic impacts, and during the first Trump Administration Dan litigated public records cases at American Oversight. Dan holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Georgetown University. 

Kevin Friedl, Senior Counsel – Kevin joins Democracy Forward from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, where he served in a number of roles over the past ten years, most recently as a senior litigator in the general counsel’s office. While at the CFPB, Kevin helped to develop and litigate enforcement cases, defended agency rulemakings and other actions from APA challenge, and defeated constitutional challenges to the agency itself. Kevin clerked for the Honorable David F. Hamilton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and holds a J.D. from New York University School of Law and Bachelor of Arts from the University of Chicago. 

Karianne Jones, Senior Counsel – Karianne most recently served as Litigation Counsel on the Biden and then Harris for President campaign. Prior to the campaigns, she was the Assistant General Counsel in the Office of Management and Budget, following her nearly five years with Democracy Forward as Senior Counsel.  She clerked for the Honorable Judge Duane Benton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit. She holds a J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School and a Master of Arts from Truman State University. 

Mike Martinez, Senior Counsel – Mike was most recently Deputy General Counsel at the Office of Personnel Management where he was central in efforts to protect our Federal civil service. He previously served as Chief of Staff and Senior Counsel to the Assistant Attorney General at DOJ’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, and formerly held a trial attorney position there. He clerked for the Honorable S. James Otero on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California and the Honorable Philip R. Martinez on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas. He holds a J.D. from Columbia Law School and a Bachelor of Arts from Stanford University.

Emily Ross, Deputy Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to the President and CEO – Emily most recently served as the Executive Secretary for the Office of the Executive Secretariat at the Department of Justice, where she directed the management of information flow and official documents across the Department. Prior to her appointment, she served as Executive Secretary at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and before that worked as a Senior Advisor for Senator Elizabeth Warren. She has spent her career developing, maturing, and transforming critical organizational processes and systems, including many years on Capitol Hill and for a variety of campaigns and organizations. She holds a Master of Public Administration from Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs and a Bachelor of Arts, also from Columbia University.

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